Greater New Orleans

School coming back with help of raffle

Bad news never keeps our community down for long. Not only do we come back, we come back in a fun, creative way.

View full sizeTed Jackson / The Times-PicayuneStudents at Resurrection of Our Lord Catholic School celebrate Black History Month and the Vietnamese New Year in February 2011.

Remember in February, when an arsonist set fire to Resurrection of Our Lord School in eastern New Orleans?

The flames caused serious damage to three classroom buildings -- and the psyches of 425 students.

Well, the classrooms have been rebuilt, and the students finished the year there. But the parish wants to make sure that nothing like that ever happens again, so it's hiring a 24-hour security guard and installing a campus-wide camera system.

That costs money. Luckily, Resurrection has a secret weapon: Glenn Braud, a retired development officer for Xavier University and longtime finance committee member at the church, with contacts all over the community.

Braud has organized a raffle to raise $10,000 for the enhanced security. But this isn't your ordinary raffle. Prizes include a 2012 Honda Fit from Premier Honda, four Hornets Club House seats for their opening home game, and 89 daily cash prizes ranging from $75 to $500, to be awarded every day from now through Sept. 29. Tickets are $20.

Winning numbers are keyed to the Louisiana Lottery's Pick 4. Unclaimed prizes will be given away at a post-raffle party Oct. 13. "If your number comes up, we'll automatically mail you your prize," said John Browne, another organizer. "Except for the Honda."

Braud said, "Once people hear about it, they aren't heistant to put up $20 for 96 chances. We give away a prize each day. That night, we find the matching stub and the next morning, we write a check.

"We had done a little flier that gives all the details, and I showed it to a longtime friend, and she's not related to Resurrection -- there's no connection." The next week, orders started coming in.

If you want to help keep Resurrection safe, and maybe win a nice prize, write a check to "ROOL Raffle" and mail it to Browne, 4615 Franklin Ave., New Orleans, LA 70122. Or call him at 504.288.6613.

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Annette Sisco is community news editor. She can be reached at asisco@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3310.